Do the owners have any voice in the housing associations?
The closest that I can think of here in the US are home owners associations (HOA) or Condominium Associations, which can be nasty sometimes. But they are usually run by elected officers who must also be owners. They will have regularly scheduled meetings to discuss and decide on expenses. Sometimes the owners will volunteer to do work in order to reduce the cost to the association.
Is this similar to the housing associations?
It's different hear - HAs are like another layer of management! They part own the properties in the above cases but the part owners are liable for all the charges!